by J. S. Scott
He kissed her first, giving her a taste of the wicked seduction that was going to occur very shortly.
He took her hand and turned her around. “I’ll come with you whenever you need me.”
Sophie knew he was sexually teasing, but there was a vibration of truth in his tone and in his mind.
Kristoff would be there for her, and she’d be there for him. Although the whole mate situation was still surreal, she could get very used to it very quickly.
“Then I guess you’ll be coming with me often,” she said jokingly, shooting him a come-hither smile as she led him to the bathroom.
“Thank fuck for that,” he answered in a low tone of relief.
She burst out laughing as she closed the bathroom door behind them, knowing that this was just the beginning. Kristoff was nearly done fighting his own demons, and beginning to find out what it was like to let go.
Sophie knew that life with the Sentinel king wouldn’t always be easy, but she’d never done anything the easy way. The difference now was that Kristoff Agares, King of the Sentinel demons, was worth fighting for, and she’d help him exorcise any of his demons if they popped up in the future. And he’d do the same for her.
Let the bad things come and go. Their love would always be the victor.
After so many years of sadness, both of them were finally ready for love.
One Year Later…
It was a beautiful day for a barbecue.
Sophie watched as all of her and Kristoff’s friends and relatives literally dropped in.
Zach and Kat entered first, teasing Sophie’s husband as he cooked steaks on the grill. Since he didn’t have to eat, it was rather amusing to see him grilling, and Sophie’s brother immediately started giving his brother-in-law pointers, even though Zach was a terrible cook.
Kristoff could have just made the meal appear, but he was starting to enjoy doing human things, and Sophie enjoyed watching him do just about anything.
Really, she could just watch those powerful muscles ripple and his powerful movements all day.
Zach and Kristoff’s relationship had become even tighter than it had been before, and Sophie loved Zach with all of her heart. She’d proved to him that he had no reason to feel guilty anymore, and he’d slowly stopped blaming himself for her fate as he’d watched her and Kristoff together. They were happy with their fate, which went a long way toward healing Zach’s lingering pain over how she’d been taken by the Evils. And Kristoff…well…he gave Zach no reason to complain. He spoiled her terribly, and seemed to take pride in doing it. Neither his fierceness nor his tenderness ever stopped amazing her.
As Drew and Talia arrived and immediately joined in the friendly argument about the food, Sophie sighed. Drew clung to Talia’s hand, his affection still just as obvious to anyone who saw them.
Athena and Hunter appeared last, and the group by the grill got louder. Hunter had changed, even during the last year. He’d mellowed out, his desire to slay demons slowly disappearing completely, much to his mate’s relief. Not that he had done anything to require punishment like he used to do. But Athena had been afraid that the residual effects of him being an equalizer would make kicking the habit hard for her mate. If it had been difficult, Sophie had never noticed. All she’d seen was Hunter and Athena constantly supporting each other, even if they did argue on occasion.
Kristoff had gotten to know his daughter, Talia, and Sophie could sense a new closeness between father and daughter that had never had a chance to blossom in the past. Kristoff respected Drew as Talia’s mate, but Sophie occasionally saw the Sentinel king watching his daughter and son-in-law protectively. But Drew still treated Talia like his own personal miracle, and Kristoff had never had cause to doubt Drew’s love for his daughter.
Athena and Kristoff acted more like brother and sister now, with Athena constantly teasing her brother about something. It was heart wrenching to watch since they’d never had the chance to just enjoy each other’s company. Now, they relished every minute of being siblings.
The goddess came in her direction, all of them taking a seat by her on the patio. “I think those fools are going to kill each other over steaks,” Athena said with a happy sigh.
Sophie knew Athena would never allow one scratch on her mate, but the good-natured arguing between the men was common now, and she knew Athena wasn’t really worried.
“Since Drew loves food, he might end up being the one to try the hardest to rescue the steaks,” Talia added with smile.
“Zach’s not really being reasonable, either,” Kat added. “He just has to put in his two cents, even though he can’t boil water without burning it. Honestly, Kristoff looks like he’s doing an amazing job. He’s changed so much.”
Sophie looked at her brother’s wife. “Is that good or bad?”
“Of course it’s good,” Kat said. “He never said so, but he was lonely.”
Sophie supposed that was true. Kristoff had never shared much of himself, even with his friends. That had changed, and he’d spilled out his past to his friends, stunned when he realized that it made no difference to any of them. Not a single one had said a harsh word about what he’d done in the past. In fact, they’d all supported him, which had relieved Sophie’s mind since she’d urged him to tell.
“How many matches has Queen Sophie done this week?” Kat asked jokingly.
“Only one,” she admitted. “It’s been a slow week.”
She’d discovered that her power was only as good as the timing. Fate picked the time and the Sentinel who would finally get a mate. Sophie just made the arrangements.
Her power had become easy to handle with Athena’s help. She’d matched up dozens of mates so far, and she cried with joy after every job. Eventually, she knew she’d bump into the Sentinel again with his mate.
Recently, she’d seen her very first case, Randolph, sporting his radiant on his arm. It had made Sophie happy to do something useful, and every case meant something to her.
She had a job she loved, a mate that loved her desperately, and friends like the women who sat around her, female confidantes that she could really trust.
Kat, Talia and Athena had helped Sophie adjust to being a radiant, which was so far from what she was used to that it had never stopped being surreal. Luckily, it was a time of peace on Earth, the Evils back to their normal strength, and the balance completely restored.
Still, that didn’t mean that Kristoff was any less busy with his own duties. He still had bargains to oversee, problems to resolve, and carried the weight of the Sentinels on his very capable shoulders. He was an amazing leader and king, something Sophie never doubted he would be.
All of them had been grateful for the period of normality after the massively large imbalance that had almost destroyed the human realm. It had given them all time to experience some healing. Not that there weren’t problems sometimes, because there always had been and always would be. But Kristoff handled his authority effortlessly, and managed his men just as well.
“Sweetheart…can you come be the judge on whether or not these steaks are done?” Kristoff bellowed to her.
She rose with a smile on her face, swaggering over to him in a pair of cutoff jeans and a tank top. “I’ll look,” she told her husband politely.
She picked up a knife and carefully slit one of the pieces of beef. It was perfect. “They look fine. Medium I’d say.”
There was a friendly grumble from the other men, but her husband shot her a happy grin.
The food was spread on the table a short time later, and the men started to demolish everything, each of them making a plate for their wives before they started.
Sophie lingered on the patio, and Kristoff joined her.
“Aren’t you coming to eat?” he asked with a frown.
“Shortly,” she answered, smiling at him as he pulled her to her feet
.
“There’s a New York strip with your name on it,” he teased.
“I love you,” she blurted out, her eyes glued to Kristoff’s handsome face.
“I love you, sweetheart.” He put his arms around her so that she could rest her head on his shoulder. “Is everything okay?”
“Okay? No. Everything’s perfect. Things are so good it’s scary sometimes.”
Everything that had happened seemed like her old life now, truly part of her past. This was her new life, and occasionally it scared the hell out of her to be so happy.
“You’re afraid this will all end,” Kristoff said huskily as he held her.
“Yes. I don’t usually think about it. But today is so perfect with all of our friends and relatives here that it’s hard not to think about it.” She hated being morose, but once in a while she had to reflect on how much everything had changed in just over a year’s time.
He rubbed her back. “It scares me sometimes, too.”
The last thing she wanted to stir up inside Kristoff was uncertainty. Occasionally, they had disagreements, but it was usually about her safety. The Sentinel king was obsessed about her staying healthy and happy.
Maybe because he sometimes feels the same way. Maybe sometimes he feels like all of this is too good to be true, too.
“Sometimes I do,” Kristoff answered in a soothing baritone, obviously catching her thoughts.
She let him hold her for a few minutes before she finally said, “I’m okay now. I’m sorry. Sometimes this whole life is overwhelming.” Her moments of panic came less and less frequently, but once in a while the fear rose in her until Kristoff could dispel those insecurities.
She took his hand and started leading him to the table. “Let’s eat. I hope they saved you something.”
“If they didn’t, they’ll just claim it’s because they were starving and I don’t really need to eat,” Kristoff grumbled, keeping a tight hold on her hand.
She turned and gave him a naughty smile. Over the last year, Sophie had learned just what it took to turn her husband on. Not that it really took much. “Are you coming?”
“You know I’d follow you anywhere,” he answered.
“And if I walk into the house?” she challenged, her body clamoring for Kristoff as she sensed that he needed her, too.
“I’d definitely follow you there,” he threatened.
She pulled on his hand. “Time to eat dinner,” she reminded him.
“Only if I can have you for dessert,” he retorted.
“Deal,” she answered in a breathless voice, already envisioning what would happen later on.
“I’ll have to sit through dinner hard as hell,” he told her bluntly.
“I’ll make it better later. I promise,” she said with a laugh.
“I’ll make sure you do,” Kristoff said arrogantly. “Now eat. You’ll need your strength.”
She let Kristoff help her into a chair, her body starting to incinerate with every casual touch.
He took the seat beside her, teasing her while she consumed her steak, with images of what he had planned for dessert.
They might not have run out of their own party to go into their home so they could mess around while their friends and family were present, but it wasn’t an easy temptation to resist.
She sent Kristoff a retaliatory mental image of what she wanted to do to him for dessert, and smiled as he reached for a glass of cold water.
They’d tease each other until they were half crazy while they were enjoying their barbecue.
But later…
Ah, later…
Sophie could hardly wait for that.
~The End~
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Books by J. S. Scott:
The Billionaire’s Obsession Series:
The Billionaire’s Obsession
Heart Of The Billionaire
The Billionaire’s Salvation
The Billionaire’s Game
Billionaire Undone
Billionaire Unmasked
Billionaire Untamed
Billionaire Unbound
Billionaire Undaunted
Billionaire Unknown
The Sinclairs:
The Billionaire’s Christmas
No Ordinary Billionaire
The Forbidden Billionaire
The Billionaire’s Touch
The Billionaire’s Voice
The Walker Brothers:
Release!
The Vampire Coalition Series:
The Vampire Coalition: The Complete Collection
Ethan’s Mate
Rory’s Mate
Nathan’s Mate
Liam’s Mate
Daric’s Mate
The Sentinel Demons:
A Dangerous Bargain
A Dangerous Hunger
A Dangerous Fury
A Dangerous Demon King
The Curve Collection: Big Girls And Bad Boys
The Changeling Encounters Collection